The German Social Union (german: Deutsche Soziale Union, DSU) is a small
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...
mainly active in the
new states of Germany
The new states of Germany () are the five re-established states of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR) that unified with the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) with its 10 states upon German reunification on 3 October 1990.
The new st ...
. It was founded in 1990 as a
right-wing opposition group during the ''
Wende'' transition to democracy in
East Germany
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
, when it was part of the
Alliance for Germany
The Alliance for Germany (german: Allianz für Deutschland) was an opposition coalition in East Germany. It was formed on 5 February 1990 in Berlin (then West Berlin) to stand in the East-German Volkskammer elections.
It consisted of the Christ ...
electoral coalition. After 1990, it fell into insignificance, only holding a few seats on the local level.
Ideology
According to its 2006 basic programme, the DSU refers to itself as a
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
,
democratic and
social
Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not.
Etymology
The word "social" derives from ...
party. Ideologically, the party's goals are to preserve and uphold
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
-
Christian civilization
Christianity has been intricately intertwined with the history and formation of Western society. Throughout its long history, the Church has been a major source of social services like schooling and medical care; an inspiration for art, cult ...
, and to dismantle the
welfare state
A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equita ...
..
The party can thus be seen as right-wing (anti-socialistic) national-conservative. It strongly differentiates itself from the
National Democratic Party (NPD) and
German People's Union (DVU), who tend more towards national socialism. Its closest ideological ally among the right-wing parties is
The Republicans. Historically, and as its name implies, it is modelled after the
CSU in Bavaria, the more rightist of the two
Union "sister parties". However it was not possible for the DSU to join the CSU, as the
CDU and CSU do not compete in the same states.
History
Establishment
In the chaotic world of 1989–1990
East German
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
politics, several long-suppressed cultural and political movements (re)emerged, and numerous small parties sprang up. The German Social Union was one of these, then several comprising conservative,
Christian-democratic
Christian democracy (sometimes named Centrist democracy) is a political ideology that emerged in 19th-century Europe under the influence of Catholic social teaching and neo-Calvinism.
It was conceived as a combination of modern democratic ...
and
liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
opposition groups.
The party was founded in
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
on 20 January 1990 by the
St. Thomas Church pastor
Hans-Wilhelm Ebeling, modeled loosely on the
Christian Social Union of Bavaria (''Christlich-Soziale Union'', CSU). Initially, the Bavarian CSU supported the DSU to the tune of millions, wishing to make it its East German branch, and thus revisiting
Franz Josef Strauß
Franz Josef Strauss ( ; 6 September 1915 – 3 October 1988) was a German politician. He was the long-time chairman of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU) from 1961 until 1988, member of the federal cabinet in different positions between ...
' mid-1970s plan to make the CSU a nationwide "fourth party".
Reunification period
On 5 February 1990, DSU joined the Alliance for Germany together with the centre-right
Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the now-defunct
Democratic Awakening (DA) to form the
Alliance for Germany
The Alliance for Germany (german: Allianz für Deutschland) was an opposition coalition in East Germany. It was formed on 5 February 1990 in Berlin (then West Berlin) to stand in the East-German Volkskammer elections.
It consisted of the Christ ...
, a centre-right coalition which ran in the first (and only) free
East German general election of 18 March 1990. The DSU polled 6.3% of the votes cast and 25 seats in the
People's Chamber
__NOTOC__
The Volkskammer (, ''People's Chamber'') was the unicameral legislature of the German Democratic Republic (colloquially known as East Germany).
The Volkskammer was initially the lower house of a bicameral legislature. The upper house w ...
parliament. It achieved its strongest results in the southern districts of
Karl-Marx-Stadt
Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt , ) is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. It is the 28th largest city of Germany as well as the fourth largest city in the area of former East Germany ...
,
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...
and
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
(that later formed the state of
Saxony
Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...
), where the DSU polled two-digit percentages.
Its most prominent politician was the lawyer
Peter-Michael Diestel, who joined the last East German cabinet (
Council of Ministers
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...
) under
Lothar de Maizière
Lothar de Maizière (; born 2 March 1940) is a German Christian Democratic politician. In 1990, he served as the only premier of the German Democratic Republic to be democratically elected freely and fairly by the people. He was also the last l ...
as minister of the interior and deputy prime minister. The DSU also held the ministry of economic cooperation, led by Hans-Wilhelm Ebeling. However, both Diestel and Ebeling left the party in June and July 1990, respectively, Diestel joined the CDU a month later. Of all parties in the People's Chamber, the DSU was the keenest on a swift reunification of East and West Germany. Its delegates repeatedly proposed a motion for East Germany's "immediate accession" to the Federal Republic of Germany.
Hansjoachim Walther, a mathematics professor, was elected chairman of the DSU on the first regular party congress in May 1990. Under his leadership, the party took a turn to the right, hosting national-conservative and in some cases even far-right voices. Unlike the other parliamentary parties and a vast majority of the population, numerous DSU members did not accept the
Oder–Neisse line
The Oder–Neisse line (german: Oder-Neiße-Grenze, pl, granica na Odrze i Nysie Łużyckiej) is the basis of most of the international border between Germany and Poland from 1990. It runs mainly along the Oder and Lusatian Neisse rivers a ...
as Germany's eastern border (which was finally laid down in the reunification treaty and the
Two Plus Four Agreement).
After
German reunification was accomplished on 3 October 1990, eight DSU People's Chamber deputies entered into the ''
Bundestag
The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Common ...
'' (federal parliament), where they joined the CDU/CSU parliamentary group. The Alliance for Germany coalition dissolved after that. In Chancellor
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl (; 3 April 1930 – 16 June 2017) was a German politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and Leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) from 1973 to 1998. Kohl's 16-year tenure is the longes ...
's
third cabinet, the DSU was represented by Hansjoachim Walther as federal minister without portfolio from October 1990 to January 1991. In the October 1990 legislative elections in the new German states, the DSU did not pass the five-percent threshold, winning 3.6% in its former stronghold of Saxony and even less in the other states, and thus failed to enter into any ''
Landtag
A Landtag (State Diet) is generally the legislative assembly or parliament of a federated state or other subnational self-governing entity in German-speaking nations. It is usually a unicameral assembly exercising legislative competence in non ...
'' (state legislature).
Ahead of the first post-reunification
German federal election on 2 December 1990, the Bavarian CSU aimed for a deal with the CDU to save its East German offshoot from irrelevance: If the CDU had abstained from competing in a few constituencies in Saxony and Thuringia, thus winning the DSU at least three "direct mandates", the small party could have been spared from the five-percent threshold and might have survived as a regional party. However, the CDU under Helmut Kohl insisted on the unwritten CDU/CSU agreement that the CSU may only run in Bavaria, while all other states are CDU's territory. Many DSU members realised that the party had no future and switched to the CDU. Eventually, DSU achieved 0.2% of nationwide votes, 1.0% in the new states. After this disappointment, the Bavarian CSU reduced its benefits to the DSU, but continued to transfer six-figure sums annually until 1993.
After 1990
The DSU drifted further towards a nationalistic course, aiming for a position inbetween the centre-right CDU and the far-right
Republicans. During the early-1990s, the party received support by the (West German) ''
Neue Rechte
Neue Rechte (''New Right'') is the designation for a right-wing political movement in Germany. It was founded as an opposition to the New Left generation of the 1960s. Its intellectually oriented proponents distance themselves from Old Right Naz ...
'' ("New Right") movement, in particular by the ''Criticón'' magazine of Caspar von Schrenck-Notzing, who also attended DSU meetings. The DSU's image was then characterised by financial misconduct, internal squabbles, resignations, and contacts with far-right groups. The cooperation of DSU and CSU was definitely ended after the Spring 1993 party conference, when Roberto Rink was elected chairman of the DSU.
In subsequent elections its share of the vote has remained under 1% of the vote in all ''Landtag'' elections held in the new states. Electoral coalitions with right-wing parties like the
German Party, the
Party for a Rule of Law Offensive
The Party for a Rule of Law Offensive, Rule of Law State Offensive Party,, Party for the Promotion of the Rule of Law, Law and Order Offensive Party, or Party of Law and Order Offensive (german: Partei Rechtsstaatlicher Offensive),''Rechtsstaat'' i ...
or the
Statt Party led to no avail. Nevertheless, the DSU has a loyal following of voters on the local level, especially in some districts of Saxony. In the western states, the party is virtually nonexistent.
The DSU had one member in the
Landtag of Saxony
The Landtag of Saxony (german: Sächsischer Landtag), also known in English as the Saxon State Parliament, is the legislature of the Free State of Saxony, one of Germany's sixteen states. It is responsible for legislation, control of the govern ...
from 2006 to 2009, after the
NPD parliamentarian
Klaus Baier had defected from his party after a series of disputes and joined the DSU.
See also
*
References
External links
*
The DSU from ''Chronik der Wende''
{{Authority control
1990 establishments in East Germany
Conservative parties in Germany
National conservative parties
Political parties established in 1990
Political parties in East Germany
Right-wing populism in Germany